Artist Jose Maria Cundin talks about his new work at Galerie Gigi

DANIEL ERATH / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE Artist Jose Maria Cundin with his 'The Unanimous Declaration of Independence of the United States of America,' on display at Galerie GiGi in New Orleans.

The artist was born in Spain, and is an inhabitant of the planet at large who just happens to have settled in Folsom for the past many years. He is well-noted in local art circles for his constantly shifting styles, topics and media. However, there is one theme he turns to frequently.

Nearly 20 years ago, Jose Maria Cundin, now 72, enlisted some fellow countrymen to re-create ancient techniques of calligraphy, hand-engraving and paper-making to make a series of heirloom editions of the Declaration of Independence. The first two prints were presented to President George H.W. Bush and King Juan Carlos of Spain in 1992.

An original engraving is on display until July 11 at Galerie Gigi in the French Quarter (627 St. Peter St.). It is accompanied by a photo documentary of the painstaking process that created this homage to mankind's highest imperative: Freedom.

I talked with Cundin this week about the meaning of it all.

Why are you holding this exhibit right now?

Every Fourth of July is a great occasion to display it. My normal activity is to be in the studio working on other things, but once a year I put my attention on this.

What is your attraction to the Declaration?

The Declaration of Independence is a document that has to be fulfilled every day of the year -- and, on the Fourth of July, we are obliged to do so. It is a plan that must be carried out every day, almost as a daily prayer. We find inspiration in this chart.

What do you want people to experience when they see this exhibit?

They should have an encounter with the principles of their nation. And nowadays it is more crucial than other times, in the sense that we are going into a national crisis of sorts, whether it be economical or political -- that's for others to discuss. It's good to reconcile yourself with references that are basic to our nationality.

You certainly sound like a true patriot.

Not to turn this into an extravagance of sorts, but I am serious about this, morally speaking. I am only consequent -- if I am living in America and have American sons -- that I make a statement in natural accommodation to that.

What do you think constitutes the pursuit of happiness, as promised in the document?

When I first read that phrase in the Declaration, I was struck by emotion. I have never encountered... something so poetic and human as that, the pathos and drama -- it was like finding the words of a new gospel. It is enlightening. There is speculation that these words were used to replace a statement more committed to the Divinity.

You sure know a lot about this. I get the feeling most Americans have probably not read the Declaration of Independence.

Well, I didn't want to say that -- you did. But I might have to agree with that. This document is probably admired more outside of this country; it has a certain romantic appeal away from here.

Why have you put so much time and so many years into the Declaration of Independence as opposed to, say, the Constitution?

The Constitution is a statement of intention, an arrangement of rules and conventional abidances within the context and accommodation of the Declaration of Independence. The Constitution is subject to amendment. The declaration is not. This will never be changed. This is the national tattoo.

Here's our fourth-grade essay question: What does the American flag mean to you?

That question I have answered in previous work, called "Twelve Extrapolations on the American Flag." It was an aesthetic comment. If I see an American flag in a rodeo or something like that, I am not going to get as excited. I get an emotion out of it that is more intellectual. I believe it is so personal, the feeling for this symbol. It will never be generic. Our personal sensibilities are variant.

The engraver and printer in the project were fellow Basques. Any significance to that?

The content and meaning that lives in every line of the Declaration of Independence, I find a definite pertinence to my identity as a Basque. It's part of the emotional human effort I share with these other people.

There is another personal significance to all of this, yes?

Yes, it's a familial anecdote. My father's birthday was the Fourth of July. So there was always the expectation that we would celebrate both events with a salutation. It is part of the cosmic geometry that happens to be always signaling somewhere.

How will you celebrate the Fourth this year?

I will probably make a nice setting with friends in Folsom, and maybe somebody will bring a firecracker and I will not mind (if they) light it.